General Frank S. Besson, Jr. class Logistics Support Vessel

The General Frank S. Besson class Logistics Support Vessels (LSV) are the largest powered watercraft in the United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

, and are designed to give the Army a global strategic capability to deliver its vehicles and cargo.

Design

Named in honor of Frank S. Besson, Jr.

Frank S. Besson, Jr.

Frank Schaffer Besson, Jr., CBE was born on May 30, 1910 in Detroit, Michigan. His father was a West Point graduate and an officer in the Corps of Engineers . Frank S. Besson, Jr. graduated seventh in his class from the United States Military Academy in 1932. In 1935, he received a master's...

, these ships have bow and stern ramps and the ability to beach themselves, giving them the ability to discharge 900 short ton

Short ton

The short ton is a unit of mass equal to . In the United States it is often called simply ton without distinguishing it from the metric ton or the long ton ; rather, the other two are specifically noted. There are, however, some U.S...

s of vehicles and cargo over the shore in as little as four feet of water, or 2,000 short tons as an intra-theater line haul roll-on/roll-off cargo ship. The vessel's cargo deck is designed to handle any vehicle in the US Army inventory and can carry up to 15 M1 Abrams

M1 Abrams

The M1 Abrams is a third-generation main battle tank produced in the United States. It is named after General Creighton Abrams, former Army Chief of Staff and Commander of US military forces in Vietnam from 1968 to 1972. The M1 is a well armed, heavily armored, and highly mobile tank designed for...

main battle tanks or 82 ISO standard containers

Containerization

Containerization is a system of freight transport based on a range of steel intermodal containers...

Subclasses

The Robert T. Kuroda is the lead vessel of a new subclass of the Frank S. Besson class called LSV (MOD). The Kuroda, named after Robert T. Kuroda

Robert T. Kuroda

Robert T. Kuroda was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration—the Medal of Honor—for his actions in World War II.-Biography:...

and its sister ship, the Smalls, named after Robert Smalls

Robert Smalls

Robert Smalls was an enslaved African American who, during and after the American Civil War, became a ship's pilot, sea captain, and politician. He freed himself and his family from slavery on May 13, 1862, by commandeering a Confederate transport ship, the Planter, to freedom in Charleston harbor...

, are generally similar to the rest of the class except that the ships are 42 feet (12.8 m) longer than the other ships of the class. This is due to a more streamlined "visor" bow that hides the front ramp and allows for the vessels to move through rough water easier. While these ships have the same main deck area as the rest of the class (10,500 square feet), they displace 6,000 tons, can make 10,000 gallons of water a day, have incinerators for burning trash, are taller than the traditional LSV Class and have more than twice the horsepower. In addition, the new ships can deliver 2,000 short tons over the shore at a range of 5500 nautical miles (10,186 km) at 12 knots (23.5 km/h).

Ships

USAV General Frank S. Besson, Jr (LSV-1)
USAV CW3 Harold C. Clinger (LSV-2)
USAV General Brehon B. Somervell
USAT General Brehon B. Somervell
The U.S. Army Vessel General Brehon B. Somervell is a . The ship and its five class cohorts were built by VT Halter Marine, of Gulfport, Mississippi. It is named for General Brehon B. Somervell, the Commanding General of the United States Army Service Forces in World War II...

(LSV-3)
USAV Lt. General William B. Bunker (LSV-4)
USAV Major General Charles P. Gross (LSV-5)
USAV SP4 James A. Loux (LSV-6)
USAV SSGT Robert T. Kuroda (LSV-7)
USAV Major General Robert Smalls (LSV-8)

External links

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Design

Subclasses

Related classes

Ships

External links